Nathan Fillion offers an idea on how long he will continue to play Nolan in The Rookie season 8. Despite network TV’s 2025-2026 programming now in full swing, ABC’s premier cop procedural is still waiting to return for new episodes. Similar to recent years, the network opted to push The Rookie and Will Trent to a mid-season debut. While the extended wait is frustrating, this scheduling appears to work well for the shows based on ratings.
Just because the show is still on its break, The Rookie season 8 has already been in production, starting back in summer. Alexi Hawley’s show is set to open the year with a massive episode, as Nolan and the rest of his team travel to Prague for an international case. Looking far ahead, however, The Rookie is showing no signs of slowing down, but as the titular character, Filion’s involvement will play a factor in how long it will continue to run.
In a new interview with People, the actor offers his honest thoughts on when he might be retiring as John Nolan in The Rookie, revealing that he gives it a decade more. Even then, however, he doesn’t think about fully walking away from the character. Read his full quote below:
“In 10 years, I would like to be just wrapping up The Rookie, maybe handing it off to someone else. And then spend a soft retirement visiting The Rookie and dabbling in the four to seven Rookiespin-off series that are still going and very, very popular. In the meantime, when I’m not working on those, I would like to be in my beach house.”
Technically, The Rookie is about Nolan’s arc as a relative newbie in the police force despite his middle age. The first few seasons of the ABC series closely followed his development from being the titular rookie to a detective in season 7. He even had his own mentee when he took over Celina under his wing. Beyond him, however, The Rookie still has a lot to offer. The show has evolved to being a proper ensemble show with other characters getting their own compelling arcs.
What makes Nolan’s comment more interesting is that it doesn’t seem like he has the intention of totally moving away from the cop show. Granted that The Rookie is experiencing immense success, being one of the most-watched shows not just on ABC, but also on broadcast TV. However, it’s no secret that production for network series is grueling, primarily because procedurals tend to produce more episodes than their streaming counterparts.
While The Rookie season 8 airs, Hawley will be busy filming the show’s second spinoff called The Rookie North. Set in Seattle, details about the show are still scarce at the moment. If it ends up being a success, however, Fillion’s comment about being involved in offshoots of his show indicates that he is more than willing to do a cameo or two while he’s still actively playing Nolan. In any case, with a similar premise, it only makes sense for his PNW counterpart to connect with LA’s original.
